Crowds began to congregate on the Wednesday resulting in an abundance of  Somerset traffic chaos as throngs of folk decided to take advantage of the great weather and head off early. By Thursday night the festival was in full swing even before the first band had taken to the stage, this was remedied pretty swiftly by Maximo Park’s eagerly awaited set at the Queens Head, attracting such a huge crowd that the area had to be closed off for while!

On Thursday night the news that musical legend Michael Jackson had died hit the site and shocked festival goers were quick to respond. Tributes popped up all around the site and Michael Jackson’s music was heard everywhere. As the festival progressed many acts paid their own tributes to the man whose music helped shape a generation he was remembered by all for his musical genius. We punctuate our lives with questions of, ‘where were you when you heard the news?’ and many thousands of people will be able to reflect that they heard it first at Glastonbury. Dizzee Rascal did one of the most memorable tributes of the weekend - see later.

Thursday night saw the return of an inevitable, though somewhat unwelcome Glastonbury visitor; the site was deluged with buckets of rain and the predictable Glastonbury mud put in its first appearance. For Glastonbury regulars this was to be expected, they’re a tough bunch of festival veterans, and newbies would be disappointed if the Glastonbury mud, which is as much of a trademark of the festival as anything else didn’t put in a guest appearance. It just wouldn’t be the same without the rain now would it? Now where did I put those wellies …?

Friday dawned and although the site was muddy the sun was trying to come out between the rain and this day brought with it the real start of the music. And what music Glastonbury brought to Somerset once again this year! Neil Young was set to perform the headline slot on Friday so there was an even bigger buzz around the site than usual with people slithering hither and thither in an attempt to get from A to B in order to catch a glimpse of as many acts as possible.

At Glastonbury though there is a hierarchy between the bands, defined by which stage and where on the running order they are, but there’s an equality here that other events would struggle to emulate, or probably even be a bit afraid to because it doesn’t matter how big or small you are, being part of the Glastonbury experience means you are part of Glastonbury as a whole, no more and no less an important part of the gig than anyone else. This was brought home to N.E.R.D. who drew a massive crowd to the Pyramid stage on Friday afternoon, but they were late starting and as with so many bands they wanted, and were determined to play their full set. We all wanted it, they wanted it, but Glastonbury had many bands lined up for the most famous stage in the world, and it’s run to a tight schedule and inevitably this would result in other bands losing time from their sets. In full swing the plug was pulled on N.E.R.D., much to Pharrel’s consternation, but that’s Glastonbury for you, the festival where no-one, but no-one is bigger than the whole. You have your part to play and that’s it, you’re part of an incredible experience which is made up of many other factors, Glastonbury have a deep understanding of this and act on it. N.E.R.D. were eventually marched off the stage despite the impromptu “unplugged” continuation of the set.

It was humid, muddy and sticky on Friday and thousands of sweaty fans were swarming through the site, over the moon at actually just being at the best venue in the world. It didn’t seem to matter what or who you actually saw, the Glastonbury vibe was in fine form, a shared experience that for a moment in time gives a glimpse into how things could be if only we could keep a bit of the it with us at all times!

Lilly Allen drew a great crowd to the Pyramid stage on Friday afternoon, shimmering in the sun she gave a surprisingly mature, fun performance, although still young she certainly showed her detractors a thing or two. Looking resplendent in a blue, clinging catsuit and lilac wig and sporting a shimmering glove in homage to Michael Jackson she gyrated her way through a set that had the lot. Covers of Britney and the Kaiser Chiefs were well received by the crowd as she proceeded to show that underneath the hype, the gobbiness and the trappings that go with it, this cocky little madam knows a thing or two. She owned the stage for her early evening slot and proceeded to have fun, waving a fag around and with a drink holder attached to the mike, this gal can now consider herself a Glasto veteran. ‘Fuck You’ (aimed at the BNP) got the whole crowd to raise a middle finger salute to the them as in her own inimitable style Lily left little room for doubt on this subject. Last year at Glastonbury she got the news that her Gran had died, this year she paid tribute to her with her Granddad, sister and other members of the family looking on. Wardrobe malfunctions and tit tape issues just added to that which is Lilly Allen, a great surprise and a whole lot more talent going on there than is widely credited, the gal done real good.

Bloc Party, Regina Spektor, The Rakes, The Maccabees, The Streets and Fleet Foxes were among the acts that performed top sets on Glastonbury’s opening day but it has to be said that The Specials were one of those acts that simply drew everybody both front of house and backstage, they hadn’t played Glastonbury before and they had a lot to say, most of it expressed perfectly throughout the performance and with a message to the BNP along the same lines as Lily Allen;

"It's taken us 28 years to get here but things are still the same. Then it was the National Front, now it's the BNP. This next song's called 'Fuck the BNP'."

The Specials really moved the Glastonbury crowd and at one point Terry Hall even cracked a smile! With a strong performance that showed that these guys were more than worthy of their slot on the Pyramid stage. They covered all their required classic hits including’ Message to You Rudy’ and were closing all too soon with ‘Ghost Town’ –The Specials showed ‘em just how it should be done!

The Other Stage showed the diversity of Glastonbury by putting on the hugely popular rising star Lady GaGa and Bloc Party, with their massive following and Joy Division inspired songs, on as an alternative to The Specials and Neil Young, splitting the crowds into the nostalgic and the forward facing.

Neil Young was the act that so many had waited all day to see, the act that Michael Eavis has been trying to secure for Glastonbury for years – and this was the night it all came together.

A curmudgeonly old bloke sets foot on the stage, someone you’d walk past in the street without giving him a second glance, an older, balding bloke who simply doesn’t do cool, not a bit of it – that is – until the first chord is struck, the magic begins and the whole of Glastonbury is transported to another time and another place. This is real music, this is a transformation, this is none other than Neil Young, for God’s sake.

Watching a master at work one cannot help but be moved beyond words, this is a genius sharing a part of his lifetime’s work at an inspirational venue that has the capacity to stop time for just a moment, and that’s just what happened with this performance. Time seemed to stand still as thousands of people were as one, nothing else existed or mattered… just the Pyramid stage, Neil Young and music that was so spine tingling it almost hurt.

This belligerent performer, a true relic of the hippy era, and a man who once played a brand new album at a gig telling disgruntled fans that it was ok because he’d play stuff they knew after before launching right back into the album he’d just played, this time he performed a two hour set that relied heavily on the ‘Crazy Horse’ era. Among the songs covered from an immense back catalogue was 'Mansion on the Hill’ , 'Heart of Gold', 'Mother Earth', 'Down by the River', a stunning version of 'The Needle and the Damage Done' and a very extended version of  'Rockin in the Free World' which prompted some 4 or 5 repetitions of the chorus. I would have swapped these extra choruses for squeezing in one version of ‘Don’t Let it Bring You Down’ though. All too soon it was over and the maestro came back for an encore where he performed a version of ‘Day in the Life’, why he chose to do that when there were so many more Neil Young classics left unplayed is a mystery – but then again a measure of the eccentricity of this remarkable man. A wonderful opportunity to see him at work and feel the magic, but this old reviewer was left just a teeny bit disappointed not to have got some from ‘After the Goldrush’ – but then again this was Neil Young

And so the main festivities on the main stages drew to a close, leaving the Glastonbury massive free to explore the other wonders on offer around the site and party the night away in style.

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